1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a skin generating method, a program and an apparatus for automatically generating and updating a skin image of an application.
2. Description of the Related Art
As a result of the recent improvement of graphic functions of personal computers, application designs are becoming exquisite. Along with this tendency, some applications provide a skin generating function permitting a change in look by a uniform design by use of a mechanism known as a skin, so that the appearance of images of the title page or the like can be modified so as to satisfy user's preference.
Data used for such skin generation are usually provided by the vendor of the application as a set, and a user can change images into a consistent design by applying the data forming the set altogether.
Known techniques for incorporating prepared images on user level into an application include a technique of making such a change by purchasing a user interface of a home network system via the internet from a provider or acquiring the same from a package medium such as a CD (Patent Document 1); a technique of incorporating an image file stored in an external storage or a favorite image acquired via the internet into a screen of a game (Patent Document 2); and a technique of a design editing apparatus which enables the user to edit designs on an operation monitoring display of process control (Patent Document 3).
[Patent Document 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2001-356851
[Patent Document 2] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application
                Publication No. 2002-126355[Patent Document 3] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application        Publication No. 2002-14-114        
For general users, a first problem lies in that it is very difficult to prepare a skin.
In a conventional application having a function of modifying a skin, there are usually a huge number of changeable image sets. It was therefore difficult for users other than professional designers. There are available only a few applications which open a skin changing interface. It was thus very difficult to independently prepare a skin in a usual case.
In the above-mentioned Patent Documents 1 and 2, while the number of images to be incorporated is small, it is possible to apply images by individually selecting favorite images. However, when applying this technique to an application requiring many image files as in a case where an image is pasted to each of parts of a music player for which skins are provided, the operation of selection by the user for each part is not realistic.
As in the design editing apparatus disclosed in Patent Document 3, a design editing program may be provided for particular applications. This apparatus is however rather for those who have the knowledge of process control to some extent and use such apparatus as an assistant for design editing. The apparatus is not therefore applicable as a general tool.
A conventional application having a function of modifying a skin has a problem of a limited number of choices for skin modification. More specifically, even skins provided by the vendor of the application are usually small in number, and the user cannot easily find his (her) favorite skin, or skins of new designs are not added quickly. As a result, the appearance of the application cannot be modified so often, resulting in circumstances not to the satisfaction of users who are very fond of novelties.
In Patent Document 1, for example, which suggests purchasing a design prepared by the service provider who provides interface information, the user would use another design if there is no favorite design among the provided ones.